Peter Luger in LA

Wines:



Wispering dove 2002 Oakville Reserve Cabernet sauvignon (bea)
Kosta-Browne 2005 Pinot Noir Rose Russian River Valley
Les Argiles Vouvray 2004 Francois Chidaine
Prinz Hallgartener Jungfer 1997


We decided to cook steak once more, but this time we purchased the Steak from Peter Luger in New York. We have had them before and we feel they are absolutely the best! We always get the Porterhouse. They ship it fresh with ice packs and include their Peter Luger Steak Sauce (I like it Cathy doesn’t) and Chocolate in the shape of Silver Dollars.

At the Sunday Farmer’s Market we asked David West (King of Mushrooms) to save us some morels and porcini mushrooms that we would pick up at the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmer’s market. We usually don’t go to that market, but Cathy had the day off so we decided to pop over and check it out. David had some great Mushrooms that he saved for us.

Afterwards we stopped at Santa Monica Seafood. They have great fish and in addition have two appetizers that we love so we pick them up.
Smoked Mussels are incredibly smoky and make a great appetizer.
Indian Salmon is cured and slightly sweet. It is very dense in texture and is just great. We wound up eating them on the deck. It was very warm, and along with Bea’s wine, it was a nice way to watch the sunset.

We then made a Salad with the Porcini Mushrooms, macerated onions, and parmesan cheese from The Cheese Store of Silverlake.

We grilled the Steaks from Peter Luger. They are huge, very thick! They cooked perfectly on the Webber. I first grilled them about 4 minutes on each side, to get the burn mark cross hatching I like, then I put the lid on and let them bake for another 10 minutes or so. They turned out rare but warm all the way through. Just the way we like it. We had two steaks, and the three of us (Bea joined bringing some great wine) we could only eat one steak! Plus Bea got some take home! We are looking for our leftovers later this week.

Cathy made her great Potato Recipe. It is baked baby Yukon Gold Potatoes, with balsamic vinegar, shallots, salt and pepper. It is always a winner.

Cathy also found a new recipe that turned out fabulously. It is a Gratin of Spinach, Morels and Cream. Spinach and mushrooms always go with steak but this was incredible.

Nectarines and Peaches had just come into the market and we decided to make our first stone-fruit desert of the year (if you don’t count cherries). We decided on using Nectarines. The Nectarines Crisp is made with Candied Ginger. We served it with Dolce De Leche Ice Cream by Haagen-Dazs. I love pies and crisps and this is a great one.

Finally we served the Prinz dessert wine. The weather was great and we walked Bea home.


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New York Times: May 17, 2006
Mushroom and Spinach Gratin


Total time: 40 minutes

Servings: 6

Note: From chef Guy Savoy at Restaurant Guy Savoy in Las Vegas

1/4cup ( 1/2 stick) butter, divided

2 bunches spinach (about 2 pounds)

1 pound button mushrooms

Sea salt

Pepper

1 cup whipping cream

1. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over low heat until it turns a nut brown color. Skim off any foam and set aside.

2. Wash the spinach and remove stems. Pat dry on paper towels. Clean the mushrooms with a damp towel. Peel and trim the mushrooms, reserving trimmings for the sauce. Slice the mushrooms as thin as possible.

3. Lightly sauté the mushrooms in the reserved brown butter. Season with one-half teaspoon salt and one-eighth teaspoon pepper. Allow to cool enough to handle.

4. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet, add the spinach and cook until the spinach is wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with one-half teaspoon salt and one-eighth teaspoon pepper and keep warm. Drain off excess liquid from the spinach.

5. Put the heavy cream and mushroom trimmings in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Let reduce by one-third, and purée in a blender until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside and keep warm.

6. To assemble the gratin, place the wilted spinach in the bottom of a 9-inch gratin dish. Arrange the mushroom slices in a spiral pattern, the slices overlapping each other, on top of the spinach. Spoon over the mushroom cream. Put the gratin under the broiler 4 to 5 minutes until golden brown on top.